EU agriculture ministers will meet on Monday 21 March in Brussels, under the chairmanship of the French minister Julien Denormandie to discuss the situation of agricultural markets, which have been destabilised by the war in Ukraine.
The European Commission will be represented by Stella Kyriakides, European Commissioner for Health and Food Safety, Virginijus Sinkevičius, European Commissioner for Environment, Oceans and Fisheries, and Janusz Wojciechowski, European Commissioner for Agriculture.
Over lunch, ministers will participate in an informal discussion on large carnivore predation.
Agricultural markets. At the beginning of the discussion, the Ukrainian Minister of Agriculture, Roman Leshchenko, will address the ministers via video conference. On the basis of information provided by the Commission and the Member States and in accordance with the guidelines given by the European Council, the ministers will exchange views on the agricultural market situation, which has been destabilised by the impact of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Member States will discuss what measures could be taken to address this situation, both in the short term (market measures) and in the long term (food security).
The Commission has already announced several emergency measures, such as aid for the private storage of pigmeat, the use of the agricultural crisis reserve or the possibility of using fallow land as pasture (see EUROPE 12913/3).
The EU imports some key commodities and agricultural inputs from Russia and Ukraine, including animal feed, fertiliser, crude oil and natural gas.
European exports to Ukraine and Russia, such as poultry, pork, wines and spirits, could also be affected.
Strategic plans. The European Commission will provide information to ministers on its assessment of the CAP strategic plans. The discussion should focus on the state of play, the feedback provided to Member States and the transparency of the process, including the timetable and the working method used by the Commission in approving the plans.
In addition, Hungary, on behalf of the Bulgarian, Croatian, Hungarian, Polish, Romanian, Slovak and Slovenian delegations, will present a statement outlining how their strategic plans will help to make European agriculture more equitable and environmentally friendly. The Visegrad Group, together with Bulgaria, Croatia, Romania and Slovenia, held a meeting on 4 March where they agreed on a common position on the strategic plans (environmental measures and the equitable distribution of funds).
There will be a number of ‘miscellaneous items’ for discussion, many of which relate to the effects of the war.
Fertiliser. The Dutch delegation will discuss the use of bio-based fertilisers. The invasion of Ukraine has highlighted the dependence of European agriculture on imports of chemical fertilisers, particularly from Russia. The rising cost of chemical fertilisers is causing problems for the agricultural sector. The Dutch delegation is requesting a derogation from the Nitrates Directive to allow the use of bio-based fertilisers
Slovenia will discuss the topic of alternatives to plant protection products such as glyphosate.
Pesticides. The Polish delegation, supported by several countries (Bulgaria, Estonia, Croatia, Hungary, Lithuania, Latvia, Malta, Austria, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia), wishes to intervene on the future proposal on pesticide usage compatible with sustainable development. These countries are concerned that the 50% reduction targets for pesticide use and related risks would be binding on both the EU and the Member States (with a possible 25% reduction under certain conditions) without proper scientific assessments of the practicalities of achieving them.
Protein plan. Nineteen countries (Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia and Spain) will call for the adoption of a European protein strategy that focuses on strengthening local production, developing regional value chains and processing capacities, promoting the cultivation and use of local plant proteins in the food and feed industry, encouraging research and innovation, developing markets and facilitating protein crop production in areas of ecological interest.
Reciprocity. The reciprocity of standards, the number one issue for the French Presidency of the EU Council before the war reshuffled the cards, should have been discussed, with the Commission presenting the first elements of its report, scheduled for June, on the legal and technical feasibility of mirror clauses. The subject was ultimately withdrawn from the Council’s agenda.
Mr Denormandie sent a letter to the Commission on 11 March detailing a series of policy levers to use to ensure that imported products meet European standards.
Geographical indications. Spain, supported by several countries (Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Latvia and others) will raise the upcoming proposal on revising the EU’s system of geographical indications (GI). These countries believe that the final evaluation of GIs by the Commission should stay within DG AGRI. The Commission would like to delegate the management of GIs to the European Union Intellectual Property Office in Alicante. Spain also believes that the new regulatory framework should not impose the mandatory inclusion of sustainability requirements in GI terms of reference, but that such inclusion should be voluntary.
Fisheries. Spain, supported by Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Greece, Italy, Ireland, Latvia, Lithuania, Portugal, Romania and Slovenia, will provide information on the impact of higher fuel prices on fishing activities. Raw material and energy costs have increased in some Member States, leading to higher production costs for the fisheries sector. Member States are calling on the Commission to take action to address the situation. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)